Literature Review #1

MOTIVATIONS AND BARRIERS TO EXERCISE AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS 

Lit Review

Citation: Ebben, William, and Laura Brudzynski. “MOTIVATIONS AND BARRIERS TO EXERCISE AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS.” Journal of Exercise Physiology, Oct. 2008, www.asep.org/asep/asep/EbbenJEPonlineOctober2008.pdf.

Summary: The purpose of this research was to gather comprehensive information as to why young adults, more specifically college students, have seen a significant decrease in physical activity levels. The study aims to highlight certain motivations and barriers influence exercise behaviors in college. Many factors play a role in what drives people to exercise and stay healthy. The most common terms or excuses are--  "no time", "lazy", "other priorities", "no motivation" and/or "too tired". These are all very reasonable reasons for why physical activity levels are so low in college students but they are barriers that hold us from bettering ourselves. Exercise physiologists conduct this research to understand why college students seem to put exercise on the side. Along with exercise physiologists, sport psychologists are also a great source for this research. A lot of restrictive factors in physical activity levels come from mentality. This article utilizes the fields of exercise physiology and sport psychology to gather data on the exercise behaviors of college students. 

Authors: 

• William Ebben
• Marquette University/Department of Physical Therapy, Program in Exercise Science, Milwaukee, WI
• Laura Brudzynski
• Marquette University/Department of Psychology, Program in Exercise Science, Milwaukee, WI

Key terms:

• exercise physiology
• the study of the body's response to physical activity
• sport psychology
• a discipline focused on the development and application of psychological theory for the understanding and modification of human behavior in the sport and physical exercise environment
• fitness
• the condition of being physically fit and health

Three quotes 

1. "Physical activity levels decline throughout the life cycle with the largest rate of decline in young adulthood"(Page 2). 
2. "This finding is consistent with other studies that identified 'positive health', 'fitness' and health/fitness management' as the most common motives for exercise"(Page 5). 
3. "While barriers such as a lack of time and motivation, and multiple commitments are most common, the exercise physiologist should ask each client to identify the specific factors that potentially compromise their exercise adherence and work together to identify solutions"(Page 7). 

Value 

This article is very useful in exploring my research since it actively investigates factors that affect behavior. The motivations and barriers behind exercise could give college campuses a better idea of how to properly promote exercise. The article highlights why students do and do not engage in exercise. Targeting the reasons and motivations behind exercise are easier than targeting the student overall. Ebben and Brudzynski offer suggestions on how to deal with individuals with barriers between them and exercise that can be useful for my research question.